Russia's Rosatom may buy controlling stake in Chile lithium project (updated)

Wealth Minerals

15/10/2019 14:40

* Uranium One may provide technology for the project 
    * Chile considers lithium a strategic mineral
    * Russian firm may get right to buy 100% of project output

 (Adds details, quotes, context)
    By Polina Devitt and Dave Sherwood 
    MOSCOW/SANTIAGO, Oct 15 (Reuters) - Uranium One Group, a
subsidiary of Russia's state nuclear company Rosatom, may buy a
controlling stake in a lithium project in Chile's Atacama salt
flat from Wealth Minerals Ltd  WML.V , the Canada-listed company
said on Tuesday.
    Under a deal struck with Wealth, the Russian nuclear firm
has the option to purchase up to a 51% stake in Wealth's Atacama
project in northern Chile, the statement said. 
    Chile's Atacama salt flat, home to leading lithium producers
SQM  SQMa.SN  and Albemarle  ALB.N , accounts for around
one-third the world's supply of lithium, a key ingredient in the
batteries that power electric vehicles, tablets and cell phones.
    Rosatom's interest in Chile's lithium industry comes as
electric automakers and governments scour the world for the
metals needed to power the quickly expanding industry.
    Chile, the world's second biggest producer of lithium, has
been slow to ramp up production further amid concerns that
mining the white metal, which is found in brine pools beneath
the desert floor, could sap scarce water supplies.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL2N231045
    The Atacama is the world's driest desert.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL2N1VQ0M4
    Rosatom, the world's biggest nuclear company by foreign
orders, previously offered Chile's government technology it said
could sustainably boost lithium output without taxing water
resources, lobbyist transparency filings showed in December.
 urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N1YW0KX
    "Partnering with U1G (Uranium One) will help Wealth
accelerate the development of lithium projects by using modern
technology and moving away from outdated solar evaporation to a
more efficient and environmentally friendly sorption
technology," Wealth President Tim McCutcheon said.
    Wealth in August said Chilean environmental regulators had
reviewed its plans to explore for lithium beneath the salt flat
and had determined the company could proceed with exploration
without filing an environmental impact study.
    The project has nonetheless met resistance from the Atacama
Indigenous Council, which represents 18 local communities. The
council previously told Reuters it would move to block any new
mines at Atacama because the impact on water supplies was
unclear.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL2N231045
    If the transaction with Wealth is closed, Uranium One would
have the right to purchase 100% of the project's production.
    Several regulatory hurtles remain before Wealth can begin
producing lithium from the Atacama salt flat. 
    Besides further environmental permits, Chile also requires
private miners to partner with the state or obtain a special
permit known as a CEOL to mine lithium on their own. They also
need to obtain a quota to export the lithium from Chilean
nuclear agency CCHEN.
    Rosatom said in June it planned to triple its revenue by
2030 thanks to foreign projects from Belarus to Bangladesh and
new product areas.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N23R2J1

 (Reporting by Polina Devitt and Dave Sherwood; Editing by Nick
Macfie and Edmund Blair)
 ((Polina.Devitt@thomsonreuters.com; +7 495 775 12 42; Reuters
Messaging: polina.devitt.reuters.com@reuters.net))